India’s history witnessed a singular national unity for the first time on January 26th, 1930, driven by a single goal. The country vibrated with the desire for ‘Purna Swaraj.’ United under the tricolor, people transcended caste, creed, and religion. The collective cry, “a government of the people, by the, and for the people,” echoed the desire for liberty, equality, and freedom.
New President And Arrival of President-Elect
The Indian National Congress appointed Jawaharlal Nehru as their president in 1929. This was a turning point in the history of the freedom struggle. Jawaharlal Nehru had returned to India in 1912 after studying law in London. Impressed by the ideologies of Garibaldi and Mazzini and the French Revolution, he jumped into the freedom struggle after practicing law for some time.
He was the youngest president of the congress to date. The younger generation of Indians was overjoyed with the thought of fresh ideologies and regenerated momentum for the struggle. The youth were now at the helm of the movement.
On 25th December 1929, the train carrying the new president-elect arrived at Lahore station. The sight that met him was one no Indian could forget. Never had a president of the Congress been welcomed with such love, expectations, and joy.
Historian B.N. Pandey wrote in his book, ‘Nehru,’ “the citizens crowded into every available space, even clambering on the roofs and trees to hail their President-elect, who, as if to symbolize the uniqueness of the occasion, rode upon a white charger, leading a detachment of Congress cavalry, like a general marching towards the battlefront.”
In his address to the people, Jawahar Lal Nehru said, “Independence for us means complete freedom from British domination and British Imperialism…” 1
Celebration of Swaraj Day
The Indian flag was hoisted by Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru on the banks of the Ravi River. It was the same tricolor as we see it today. The only difference was that there was a charkha at the center instead of the Ashok Chakra.
The whole country was electrified. Thousands of Indian flags fluttered over the city. Every building, house, shops, office, and college were decorated with Indian flags. The town resounded with cries of “Inqilab zindabad” and “Bharat Mata Ki Jai,” as huge processions paraded through it.
The same scene played out across the country. People hoisted the Indian flag. It was a day for rejoicing and a promise. Every Indian made a promise of ‘Purna Swaraj.’ This historic moment ushered in a new era in the annals of the freedom movement. It was now an all-out war.
Turmoil and upheaval
The years from 1919 to 1929 witnessed violent upheavals and turmoil. The British government always followed a reactionary policy. Their economic measures and political suppression drained the Indian economy. Added to that was the burden of excessive taxation. The plight of the masses was poignant.________________________________________
1. Prof. B.N. Pandey, ‘Nehru’ pg.141.
THE Jallianwala Bagh Tragedy
The Jallianwala Bagh massacre on the 13th of April, 1919 was one such reactionary and violent incident. It was Baisakhi day. Thousands of innocent Indians, men, women, and children, had gathered at Jallianwala Bagh near Amritsar, to celebrate the occasion. The Bagh had only one opening.
The British took this as an opportunity to teach “those Indians” a lesson in loyalty. Taking a large troop of soldiers, Gen. Dyer entered the premises and surrounded it from all sides. He made sure that nobody could exit. Then the army opened fire, killing more than 1500 people and injuring over 1200. The unnecessary brutality and lack of accountability of this attack shocked the nation.
The British government was concerned, but their only concern was to curb the violence in the aftermath of the heinous incident. General Dyer was called upon to justify his actions. But he never showed any remorse.
Rage and a feeling of injustice were rife among Indians, especially the youth. Micheal O’Dwyer, the Lieutenant-Governor was assassinated by Udham Singh, a witness of the tragedy. Udham Singh was later caught and hung to death.
"Simon, Go Back."
The British tried to placate the Indians by appointing a commission in 1927 to investigate the governance of India and recommend reforms. The composition of the commission included Sir John Simon and seven British members. This infuriated the Indians further. It showed the intentions of the British very clearly by not having any Indian representative on board.
The entire country rose in protest and marches. Cries of “Simon go back” and black flags greeted the commission in every town and city of India. In Lahore, the police superintendent ordered a lathi charge on a peaceful procession. The superintendent, James Scott headed the chargers and severely wounded Lala Lajpat Rai.
Death of Lala Lajpat Rai
Lala Lajpat Rai or ‘the Punjab Kesari’ was one of the most popular leaders of the movement. He was a free thinker, social reformer, and a hero of the Punjabi youth. December 1928, Bhagat Singh and his friends Raj Guru and Sukhdev assassinated a British police officer mistaking him for police superintendent, James Scott. They intended to avenge the death of Lala Lajpat Rai. All three of them were hanged in March 1931.
"DO or Die"
The Indian nationalists were finally fed up by the maneuvers of the British government. The high hopes of the Indian Liberals in the British sense of justice were finally shattered. The London return Indian elite who had dreams of getting a place in the governance, also realized that they would always be treated as ‘second class citizens.’ Complete independence was the only answer. Now it was time for all or nothing.
The Congress working committee which met at Lahore took up the pledge of ‘Purna Swaraj.’ 26th January 1930 was declared ‘Purna Swaraj Day’. The significance of this day lies in the fact that all Indians, despite their different ideologies, united under one flag with one aim. This gave momentum to the movement which stopped only with the culmination of complete freedom.
Civil Disobedience Movement and Salt Satyagraha
Following the pledge, the nationalists decided to launch a civil disobedience movement. The inauguration of this movement was done by Gandhiji with the salt satyagraha.
The decision of Gandhiji to organize a salt satyagraha was a stroke of genius. It had all the elements of a high-class strategy- surprise, universality, simplicity of tactics, easy availability of instruments of war, and an open challenge to the enemy. The choice of salt also appealed to the masses. It was a necessity for survival and the government earned a lot of revenue by implementing unnecessarily high taxes on it. The salt laws were inhumane and barbaric. The British government imposed a heavy duty on salt, especially in Bengal and other sea coastal provinces.
As was his habit, Gandhiji wrote a letter to the British Government informing them of his decision. The British government considered “the offense so trifling as to be worthy of serious notice.” They were mistaken.
The date was decided as 12th March. The atmosphere was one of excitement and anxiety. Satyagrahis, men, and women, started coming to the ashram. They sat in silence sometimes listening to Gandhiji.
At exactly 6:30 a.m. Gandhiji commenced the march with Prabha Shankar Patni, Mahadev Desai, and Pyarelal, his secretary. He was also followed by 71 of his ashram members. People crowded the roads and showered flowers and kum kum on the procession.
The distance from Sabarmati to Dandi, a small village on the east coast of Gujrat was 241 miles. This journey was covered in stages. At every village that he passed, he was joined by a stream of Satyagrahis. Gandhiji gave talks in every village, spreading the message of ‘Purna Swaraj’ and encouraging the people to join the movement.
The number of people joining the procession grew in every village and with it, the excitement of the people. This was a movement even the common man could identify with. The sea of satyagrahis flowing towards Dandi was a sight to behold. The road to Dandi resounded with patriotic and religious songs. After a 25-day journey, they reach Dandi. Gandhiji picked up a lump of salt from the seashore and said, “With this, I am shaking the foundations of the British Empire.”
Salt laws were broken throughout the country and this heralded the beginning of the civil disobedience movement. Prominent Indians gave up their posts in government offices. Students left schools and colleges and jumped into the freedom struggle. Tax laws were broken throughout the country and peaceful marches were organized.
The impact of this movement was immense. India and its struggle for freedom now gained international importance. It had also succeeded in uniting all factions of the community under one banner with one goal.
Muslim separatism, as created by the British ‘divide and rule’ policy, was still strong. The Muslim League, led by Mohammed Ali Jinnah refused to participate and there were some communal outbreaks in some parts of the country.
The British were rudely awakened. The movement, which they had considered too petty to lose sleep over, had taken the form of a tsunami. This was the turning point of the Indian freedom movement which led, finally to our independence at midnight on the 15th of August,1947. 26th January was marked as ‘Purna Swaraj Day’ and has been celebrated every year by the unfurling of the Tricolor.
The years after 1947 were tragic as India paid the price for independence with partition. The country became a scene of bloodbath as thousands of innocent men, women, and children were brutally killed. The streets were ablaze with communal riots. The British had succeeded. The seed of ‘divide’ that they had planted was now bearing fruit.
We continue to ignore the lessons of the past. Only when the entire population rallied around one flag could freedom be achieved. The divide remains, even after over 75 years of independence. State lines have bred local biases and regional nationalism. We seem to have forgotten the lessons learned from our united efforts of the satyagraha of 1930. The borders of the state are drawn for governance convenience. Why has it drawn borders on our hearts?
References:
S.R. Bakshi- ‘Civil Disobedience Movement 1930 to 34’.
http://hdl.handle.net
National digital library
Sumit Sarkar- ‘Modern India’.
Bipin Chandra- ‘India’s struggle for Independence.’